Leading with Vulnerability

How do some of the world’s top leaders unlock the potential of others, create trust, and lead through change? Jacob started out with one basic question: Is vulnerability the same for leaders as it is for everyone else? It turns out that it’s not. On August 20, 1991, Hollis Harris, the CEO of struggling Continental Airlines told his 42,000 employees to pray for the future of the company. The next day he was fired. What Hollis did was vulnerable, but it was not leadership. While vulnerability cripples some leaders, others tap into it and use it as a superpower. Vulnerability alone makes leaders seem incompetent. Competence on its own makes it hard for leaders to connect with their people. The key is to develop both competence and vulnerability, what Jacob calls “The Vulnerable Leader Equation.” Based on over 100 CEO interviews and a survey of nearly 14,000 employees, renowned leadership thought leader and futurist Jacob Morgan shares candid stories and original research that shows how leaders can tap into vulnerability to transform themselves, their teams, and their organizations. This book will show you why it’s so crucial to lead with vulnerability and how to do it well. You will learn: The difference between being vulnerable and leading with vulnerability The 5 vulnerable leader superheroes What makes leaders feel most vulnerable at work and why The ROI of leading with vulnerability The 8 attributes of vulnerable leaders What happens when vulnerability is used against you How to climb the “vulnerability mountain” What keeps leaders from being vulnerable at work and how to overcome it Leading With Vulnerability is not just a book to share with your leaders and your co-workers. It's an invitation to a paradigm-shifting adventure. Nothing like this has been written before and, after reading it, you’ll never look at leadership the same way again.

Foreword xiii Introduction: Where It All Began 1 I Who Is a Weak Vulnerable Leader? 9 1 Panic! 11 2 The Vulnerable Leader Equation 21 3 Why Lead with Vulnerability? 41 4 Tough Guys 61 5 How Are You Feeling? 67 6 The Land of the Goods 75 7 Thick Skin but Not Armor 81 8 How People Become Vulnerable Leaders 85 II What Prevents Leaders From Being Vulnerable at Work? 93 9 Why Don’t We Have More Superheroes? 95 10 Breaking the Leadership Stereotype 99 III What Makes Leaders Feel Vulnerable? 111 11 The 10 Vulnerability Signs 113 12 It Takes One to Know One 131 13 I Saw the Sign! 135 14 The Sprinter and the Gymnast 141 15 What We Got Wrong About Milgram’s Experiment 149 16 The Four Types of Questions 155 IV What Happens to Leaders When They Are Vulnerable? 167 17 Getting Past the Defense! 169 18 Critical Moments 173 19 What Does Vulnerability Feel Like? 185 V How to Lead with Vulnerability 197 20 Unlocking your Superpower 199 21 The Five Vulnerable Leader Superheroes 201 22 The Eight Attributes of Vulnerable Leaders 211 23 The Vulnerability Wheel 237 24 The Vulnerability Mountain 249 Notes 257 Acknowledgments 261 About the Author 263 Index 265